Shipment of petrol arrives in shortage-hit Venezuela

A shipment of imported petrol arrived in oil-rich Venezuela today to alleviate shortages caused by a 27-day-old strike that has become a battle of endurance between President Hugo Chavez and his foes.

The Amazonian Explorer, laden with 525,000 barrels of unleaded petrol, had set off from Brazil, infuriating Venezuela's opposition leaders who are heading a crippling general strike aimed at forcing Chavez from office.

The leftist-populist president today headed to Puerto La Cruz, 220km east of Caracas, to personally supervise the unloading of the fuel.

The shipment amounts to just over twice the amount of petrol Venezuela consumes in a day.

The opposition said the government's efforts to counter massive petrol shortages were little more than a drop in the ocean. ");document.write("

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But Chavez insisted he had turned the tide against his opponents after military troops seized oil installations and tankers that the strikers had immobilised.

In Caracas, motorists waited in line for hours to fill their tanks, sometimes only to be told fuel had run out.

Only about 10 per cent of the 300 service stations in the capital have fuel, according to the association of petrol station owners. Severe shortages were also reported elsewhere in the country.

The strike mainly affects the giant Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) state oil company, the lifeline of the South American country.

Authorities say crude output, which was over three million barrels a day in November, is now down to 700,000 barrels a day. But the opposition says it is around 160,000 barrels.

The fifth largest oil exporter, the South American country has only shipped out a few tanker loads in recent weeks.

This is of particular concern to the United States, the largest importer of Venezuelan fuel, which is preparing for a possible war against Iraq.

Crude oil prices ended the week at record levels as investors, jittery over the strike, pushed prices to nearly $US33 a barrel on New York's futures market yesterday.

The business and union leaders heading the protest have pledged to pursue the strike until Chavez steps down or calls early elections. They claim his self-styled social revolution has failed and has driven the country to the brink of bankruptcy.

They also announced that another massive protest march would be held in Caracas tomorrow. Hundreds of thousands of people have taken part in similar demonstrations in the past weeks.

Chavez has repetedly rejected the opposition demands and accused the strike leaders of sabotaging the economy.

Several countries, including the United States and Britain, have reduced staffing at their embassies and warned their citizens not to travel to Venezuela because of the high risk the crisis could turn into violent confrontation.

The government and the opposition have been involved in internationally mediated negotiations, which failed to make significant progress and were suspended yesterday until January 2.